The Rain's Melody
by CircadianDance
Summary: The rain finally came. Drizzling down at a soft pace. The air always tasted better when it rained for some reason. Naruto slowly breathed in, then out. Trying to fill his lungs up with the cool, sweet, air. Angst. NaruSasu. KakaIru.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey guys. I know, I know, must of you must have thougth I was dead, but I am alive and well... -stares at the empty seated arena- Obvisously I have lost some of my audience for lack of updates -sighs- But I've been really busy. I have been writting whenever given the chance, which sadly, isn't very often. So I hope you all can make do with my random updatings of my stories.

I highly reccomened the song to Gunslinger Girl, Dopo Il Sogno. It's what I listened to while typing this and I think its very... fitting. If you don't have limewire or a music software, the site gendou dot com lets you download free anime music. Virus free, promise, in case some where wondering. All you have to do is make an SN, kinda like fanfic. It's spiffy. I got the idea for this fic while walking in the rain one day. Enjoy, and I'll try to update my other fics this weekend.

_.x.X.x. .**t.h.e. .r.a.i.n.s. .m.e.l.o.d.y. **.x.X.x._

_.x.X.x. .**G.a.a.r.a.B.e.l.o.n.g.s.T.o.M.e. **.x.X.x._

The Rain's Melody

One Uzumaki Naruto was currently sitting atop the roof of the apartment he lived in, staring up at the thick, black clouds that were rolling in. The sky was dark and no noise could be heard except for the faraway boom of thunder. It was peaceful, laying up above the world, watching the heavens, with no one to annoy you. He waited, waited for that blissfully similar rain to fall. The rain that was so similar to him, where on one else was. No one else could really relate. Relate to being so alone, so pitifully alone. There was no one who understood his pain. Sure, there were others who had lost their parents, but at least they had known them once. He, Naruto, had never gotten a chance to see his mother, or to know his father, the third Hokage. Sasuke, he had thought that Sasuke was like him, but he was wrong.

Sasuke had the memories of his parents. A mother's soft touch. A father's kind word. Even if Sasuke's parents had been hard to please, at least they still loved him, and he knew that. They both did. And if even for a while, Sasuke had an older brother. One who he could play tag with, that he could talk to, tell all his fears to. Naruto didn't have any of that. He had Iruka, true, but that was nothing close to a father or brother. The shinobi tried to be like a father to him, and sometimes he almost succeeded, but there was still that gap. The huge gap that was filled by the presence of a demon. The Kyuubi. The thing that made him this way. Alone. That thing was what caused all of this. So many deaths, and lives ruined, and children left alone, and parents who had lost their children. There was nothing worse than witnessing a parent bury their own child. Naruto could feel it anytime one of the villagers glared at him, they blamed him, and with good reason. He was a monster. Responsible for killing many innocent people, for taking so many lives that weren't yet lived.

The rain finally came. Drizzling down at a soft pace. The air always tasted better when it rained for some reason. Naruto slowly breathed in, then out. Trying to fill his lungs up with the cool, sweet, air. It felt, well, almost like he was being purified. It was on no account doing such, but it didn't mean it didn't feel nice. That went on for a quite while, slowly breathing in and out. Making the bad go out and the good fill its' place. It wasn't necessarily great, but he was content. Content enough to not feel so evil, or contaminated. The feelings of contentment only came with the rain, no matter how hard he searched for another way to bring out that feeling.

He didn't mind though. He had something to look forward to that he knew would never leave him, go away and never say anything else. When he was younger, other children would come up to him, and ask if he wanted to play. He felt like crying each time. Someone wanted him near! But quickly, their mother would come running, and usher them away. Talking about how no one was to play with the _demon_ child. What did that woman know? She didn't know him! She knew him about as much as Sakura, Sasuke, or Kakashi knew him. No one knew who he really was.

The rain felt good on his skin too. Refreshing after so many tiring missions. His shirtless flesh almost steamed when it came in contact with the rain. One could almost fall asleep, if not for the slight chill of the water. If not for that, the steady sounds and flashes would have slowly pulled the blonde into slumber. His alone time was interrupted though, by a voice colder than the rain, and louder than the thunder.

"What do _you_ think you're doing?" Sasuke said staring at his teammate. They could have a mission tomorrow, and here this idiot was, just asking for a cold.

"What does it look like? I'm laying in the rain." Naruto sighed.

"I noticed. Maybe I should rephrase my question. Why the _hell _are you laying in the rain?" Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"It feels nice." he said simply, and closed his eyes. Sasuke was being to nosy today.

"I doubt it. The rain is cold and the temperature is low. You're going to catch a cold in a matter of time."

"If I catch a cold now or later, it doesn't matter. When I do, no one will be there to help me. So what's the difference when it happens."

Sasuke couldn't believe the words coming from Naruto's mouth. He knew that the blonde had been depressed lately, it was evident in his speech and general attitude. But why would he think that no one would help him if he was sick? Didn't he know he had friends? One's that cared about him. Someone would come and help Naruto if he was sick… Wouldn't they? Sakura… would protest about being to busy, and Kakashi… would say Naruto could take care of himself. Iruka was away on a mission… But what about himself? If Naruto was sick, would he, Uchiha Sasuke, go out of his way to help Naruto? Even if he was sick? He thought, and he doubted he would. He doubted anyone would. The thought made Sasuke's stomach churn lightly. Quite ironic. Naruto wasn't mean to anyone. In fact, he tried to help whenever he could. But no one cared. Not enough to tell him. To tell him that he mattered. He did. If Naruto was gone, Sasuke didn't know what he'd do. Yet he didn't care enough to think about coming over and helping his rival/best friend if he was sick.

"People care." was all Sasuke could manage.

"Of course they do. Just like they care whether I live or die. Whether I eat or starve. Whether I sleep in a bed or on the streets."

"What are you saying Naruto?" Sasuke asked suddenly. "How can you sit there and act like no one cares about you?"

"Because no one does. I try to tell myself different. But the voice won't let me anymore. I know I'm a demon. I killed all those people. If you could hear their screaming, you'd hate me just as much as I hate myself. I hate the blood on my hands. And the looks in their eyes. When I clawed at them and they cried, it didn't matter if they were adults or children… everything was so red." Naruto's eyes became slightly glazed over as he spoke.

Sasuke stared at Naruto. What was he talking about? He had known that Naruto had the Kyuubi within him, but he didn't now he could communicate with the fox. The demon was obviously toying with Naruto's mind. Sasuke looked at the blonde's eyes. They were no longer their normal blue. Now they were dull and dark. Like an innocent child who'd witnessed how cruel the world could be first hand. And that was exactly what he was really.

Naruto's life reminded Sasuke of a new puppy for a spoiled child. He was loved at first, that was the parent's wish. But after the parent was gone, and the child was left alone with the puppy, and they grew tired of the dog, they would resent it. If only they didn't have that dog they could have something so much better. Once a spoiled child grows tired of a dog, everyone knows they always want a cat. That's exactly what Sasuke was to the village. A cat. When someone kicked a dog, the animal would feel bad. Feel like something was their fault. They'd want forgiveness from their master. Cat's on the other hand, don't want anything to do with people in the first place. Some find one person they like, and only show affection to them. But even that is rare. Everyone showed Sasuke unwanted attention, while they shunned Naruto, making him feel frustrated that Sasuke got the praise and kind words that he wanted. The words that he wished for so badly. The words that tormented him in his dreams. But those words meant nothing to the cat. The only thing the cat wanted attention from was the one thing that didn't give it to him and the only thing it wanted attention from, the dog.

"Sasuke. If I were to die, no one would care." Naruto laughed, still staring up at the falling rain.

"I would." Sasuke said painfully low, not loud enough for the fox-boy to hear him.

"Why are you here anyways? Don't you have a life?" Naruto asked the Uchiha smirking yet still not looking at the other boy.

"Yeah I do, and it's centered on murdering my wonderful older brother, which involves me training my ass off, which I won't be able to do if you got sick and our mission gets canceled tomorrow." Sasuke growled at the soaked boy. "So quite being all angsty and depressed, go back to being Naruto, loud and annoying, and go in the house."

"So go back to being myself? Did I hear you correctly?" Naruto finally tore his gaze from the sky and turned to look at Sasuke. He stood up and slowly advanced on the Uchiha. Sasuke didn't know why, but Naruto was scaring him. He took a few steps backwards and realized that he was pressed up against an outcropping part of the apartment. Naruto got two feet from Sasuke, but didn't stop. Once he reached him, he put a hand on each side of Sasuke's head. Sasuke couldn't help but stare into the dead blue eyes. Eyes like a ocean on a stormy day. More gray than blue, and just waiting to swallow you up and tare you to pieces.

"You will not tell me what to do, Uchiha, understood?" Naruto said slowly, drawing out each word, causing the other boy to nod a fraction of an inch. Naruto was really scaring him.

"Good." Naruto managed one more word before he slumped onto Sasuke's chest.

"Naruto! Naruto!" Sasuke said and held the boy up by his shoulders. He realized that Naruto had passed out. He was burning up. Sasuke knew he had to get the boy inside.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: The Rain's Melody

Author: Daitai Otonashii Ookami

Music While Writing: I Like You Better Before You Were Naked On The Internet, by From First To Last; Dopo Il Sogno from Gunslinger Girl.

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Sasuke didn't know much about fevers, having never gotten many himself, but he knew that you could get one laying in the rain half naked for a while, and that you could get pneumonia and die from one as well. That idiot just had to go and act so stupid. What was wrong with him anyways? Pushing it aside, he decided to work at the task at hand. He carefully picked up the other boy, who continually shuddered as the cold worked its' way into his body. Sasuke walked from the roof, to the stairs, and then traced the familiar path to Naruto's door.

Once inside the small, yet absurdly neat apartment, Sasuke laid Naruto on the couch. Since he didn't have a shirt on, Sasuke wouldn't have to worry about taking it off. The pants on the other hand, would be a problem. Just thinking about taking them off caused a light blush to form on Sasuke's unnaturally pale cheeks. He decided that Naruto would thank him for it later. He closed his eyes as he undid the button and the zipper, but as he began to ease them off of Naruto's wet body, his hands couldn't help but notice how unnaturally soft Naruto's skin was as it brushed against him. The blonde now laid on the couch in only his boxers, with still wet skin and hair.

Sasuke stood up and walked to the bathroom to retrieve a towel, and put Naruto's pants into the clothes hamper while he was in there. When he got back into the living room, he got the excess water from Naruto's chest, rubbing him lightly with the towel, then got a wet cloth for his forehead. Arming Naruto with all the blankets he could find, Sasuke tucked the blonde in, and hoped that they would be enough, then took a seat in a red armchair.

"Dobe…" Sasuke whispered softly. "You had to go and act like an idiot." He didn't get a response. He wasn't expecting one. That's why his tone had been so… one would dare say emotional. He knew that Naruto wouldn't say insults, or reject him, if he wasn't conscious to do so.

"Then again. You always do. You brought me back to Konoha. That was by far, the stupidest thing anyone has ever done." The words were harsh, but the sound of Sasuke's voice was begins to crack, just slightly, and there was a small smile gracing his lips. "Literally the stupidest. You are the most sadistic person I know. You bring me back, with no explanations other than you promised Sakura. But why did you promise her in the first place? You had to have cared… if even a little. I'd like to hope so."

The Uchiha rose suddenly, and walked over to couch. He crouched down and stared at Naruto's face, who was slightly pink from the fever, and was just looking absolutely helpless. Sasuke placed a hand on Naruto's cheek and traced each of the three whiskered scars as slowly as he dared. Naruto's lips were parted, just enough so he could breathe, and he couldn't help but draw Sasuke's attention to them. He wouldn't, he told himself. He would not kiss Naruto while he was asleep. Not only would Naruto be pissed if he found out, he owed that to him as a friend. There was too much going on for Naruto right now to have to worry about Sasuke's feelings. He pulled back, content to just stare.

Naruto didn't realize what he did to people. When he went from happy-go-lucky, to dark and depressed, people got worried. Sasuke closed his eyes, but kept his hand resting on Naruto's cheek. It was warm in the apartment. Sasuke's eyes kept trying to close, but the Uchiha defiantly kept them open as long as he could. Eventually though, exhaustion won, and his head slowly fell upon the side of the couch, and sleep claimed him.

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The rain outside showed no signs of letting up anytime soon. Kakashi and Iruka sat on the couch, Iruka leaning on his lovers shoulder. It was warm in the apartment, and both were comfortable. Sighing contently, Iruka snuggled into Kakashi's shoulder, happy just to be with his koi.

"Iruka?"

"Hm?"

"Were you ever in love before?" Kakashi wondered. He had been. It still hurt him to think about the people he loved. Did Iruka ever have anyone it hurt to think about?

"Yes." He smiled slightly. Kakashi was taken back. He wouldn't have guessed that the other shinobi would've answered yes to his question. He was also a bit jealous. Who else did his Iruka care for? Kakashi waited for him to elaborate.

"…. Don't make me ask who." Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"You." Iruka laughed at the expression on Kakashi's face.

"You got me worried over nothing?"

"You were worried?"

"Well I can't very well share you with any body, now can I?." Kakashi nuzzled Iruka's neck playfully. "You're mine."

"What about you Kakashi? Were you ever in love?" The gray haired shinobi avoided the question though, distracting the other by nipping at his neck gently. He never wore his mask when he was with Iruka. He didn't have to. Iruka sighed though. He knew that Kakashi had purposely avoided him. He would get it out of him though. For now, he closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of his lover's lips on his neck.

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Naruto opened his eyes and was met with black. He blinked, then sat up. The black he had seen, he though bemusedly, was hair. He stared at the other boy whose head was slumped against the couch. Pale skin contrasting immensely with his hair color.

"Teme." he whispered, staring down at the boy. "You don't care. Don't think you do. No one can. You'll end up broken and hurt. And I will _not_ let that happen to you. You're broken enough as it is."

Naruto got up from the couch as easily as he could, in hopes that Sasuke wouldn't wake suddenly. He managed with only him stirring slightly.

"N-naruto." he murmured.

Shaking his head, banishing all thought of what his name might have meant in Sasuke's dreams, Naruto walked into the bathroom. He noticed that his pants were in the clothes hamper. Even he knew not to put wet clothes in a hamper, and retrieved them to put in the washer. As he came from the laundry room, he wondered what he would do with the sleeping shinobi on the couch. Well, first thing's first, he decided to take some advil.

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**End Chapter Two**

**T.B.C.**

**A/N:** Well, there's your second chapter guys, I'll get more out soon, I just have to update Miso Soup and then Der Vampir before I can work on the third chapter of this.

**Muse Reminiscing On Chapter:**

Me:-yawns- I have been sick all day, and I have to go back to school tomorrow, so be lucky that Ayame-hebi-kun made me type this up.

Ayame: Think, there will be lot's of opportunities for fluff later! I had to get past this roadblock first.

Kurayami: Along with that damn fluff, I'll put angst in too, so ha.

Ayame:-teary eyes- Can't you cut back on the angst plot bunnies a little kawaii-woof-woof-kun?

Kurayami: -stares at Ayame- -wavering-…. FINE. You can have some stupid fluff in the next chapter, baka, as long as I can have my angst too.

Ayame: Yay! -tackleglomps Kurayami-

Kurayami: -blush-

Me: Hey! No MusePDA in my head guys! -rolls eyes-

Me: Review trusty readers… -looks at you expectantly- Please?

Ayame: -puppy dog eyes-

Note: I typed this last night, but I couldn't get on the internet, so I'm posting it this morning (aka, next minute or so)


	3. Chapter 3

Title: The Rain's Melody

Author: Daitai Otonashii Ookami

Music While Writing: "Dopo Il Sogno" from Gunslinger Girl was playing while I typed the Sasuke and Naruto scenes, and "Simple and Clean" played while I typed the Kakashi and Iruka stuff.

Beta'd By: The Tao of Hyuuga... THANK YOU -tackleglomp- You're the best Naruto beta evvver!

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Naruto sat at his kitchen table, head laying on his forearm. The medicine he had taken had left a bad taste in his mouth, and it had been difficult not to gag when he swallowed it. The room was quiet and dark, and the soft pitter-patter of the rain outside was lulling him into sleep again. He shook his head and stood up. He would have to do something about Sasuke first.

Walking into the living room, Naruto saw that Sasuke was still asleep, which was abnormal for the Uchiha, since he had never been one to sleep long. Naruto guessed that it had been about five hours since he had passed out on the roof, and the clock that flashed six P.M. approved him of his assumption. Sasuke was laying where Naruto left him, pale skin looking a little flushed, dark hair looking unmused, even though he was in just the position that gravity should've caused his hair to look slightly out of place.

Naruto stood about a foot from Sasuke, before he reached out his hand, placing it on Sasuke's shoulder. The other Shinobi's eyes flew open, as a hand flashed for the kunai pouch at his hip. He sighed though, when he noticed the person who had awoken him was no one but Naruto.

"Evening." Naruto said, removing his hand. "Why are you still here?"

"Because I fell asleep, dobe. What did it look like?" Sasuke scoffed, standing up. Naruto took a seat on the couch, and Sasuke followed suit.

"Looks to me like your face is red. Are you catching a fever too?" Naruto reached forward and placed a hand to Sasuke's forehead, which was burning up. Sasuke pulled away at the touch, and remembered that Naruto was sick as well.

"I don't get sick. It must just be hot in here." Sasuke said, causing Naruto to roll his eyes.

"Admit it. You're sick too."

"Only weaklings get sick, my immune system is a lot better than yours, so just shut up, Naruto." Sasuke all but growled.

"Well sorry. It's all my fault there's a giant fox demon munching away at my insides. And I'm so very sorry that my wonderful immune system isn't as great as most peoples, least of all yours." Naruto glared, before looking away.

Sighing, Sasuke turned to face the blonde. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

"Yes you did. And you're sick too, so stop acting like you're better than everyone else for a damn minute."

"Fine. If I admit I'm sick, you have to admit you're an idiot." Sasuke smirked. Naruto would never to that.

Naruto closed his eyes tightly, before saying quietly, "I, Uzumaki Naruto, am an idiot. I'm stupid, and useless, and I'm a terrible ninja. The prick who's saved my life tons of times is a complete bastard, and I can't even return the favor. I'm so stupid that the village I belong to hates me, and I still care for it. So do the only people I care about; they hate me too."

Sasuke's head turned to look at Naruto, who still had his eyes shut. He didn't have to go that far, hell, Sasuke didn't even expect him to say it at all. What was he thinking?

"Fine. I'm sick." He muttered.

Naruto's eyes opened again, and he blinked a few times, before a smile slowly slid onto his face. It reminded Sasuke of one of those masks that were used for plays, with the half-smiling, half-crying faces. That's what Naruto looked like, with his smiling lips and his crying eyes. What the hell was going on with his mind? Sasuke shook his head at looked at Naruto once more.

"Er.. You know… you're… you're not as.. stupid as… I er…say, or other.. people think." Sasuke said, then once more turned away. A smile danced on Naruto's lips, and Sasuke didn't know whether it was a real smile, or one of those masks again, but he felt himself blushing anyways.

"And you're not as much of a bastard as I make you out to be." Naruto said back, before he stood up suddenly. "Anyways, now that you're up, I should make you take some Nyquil too."

"I told you, I'm not sick!" Sasuke protested.

"On the contrary, you just admitted you were." Naruto's tone was teasing.

"Fine. But if your damn medicine kills me, I swear I'm going to..." Sasuke said with a serious voice.

"Fine. If my medicine kills you, you can kill me. Deal?" Naruto said with the same tone.

"Deal. ….Hey, wait a second! If I'm dead how can I-"

"Ha. About time you caught on."

Naruto laughed and headed to the kitchen, Sasuke let a smile show on his face too, it was small, but there. He still didn't know if the smile Naruto showed was real or not, but he thought that maybe the ones he smiled around him were, since they weren't just lip smiles. When Naruto smiled at Sasuke, they were smiles that showed in his eyes, and he liked that.

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The rain played a soft tune outside the open window, the room was beginning to turn dark, and the sheets were soft against his skin. Iruka gave a contented sigh. Kakashi scooted closer to him.

"Close the window. It's cold."

"I like it open."

"I like it shut."

"…" Iruka didn't have to say anything, the window would stay open.

Kakashi resisted the urge to whine and instead he buried his face into Iruka's back in an attempt to steal his warmth. He started giggling at the sudden image in his head, a chibi him latching onto a crying chibi Iruka. The laughter that ghosted his back began to make Iruka suddenly twitch.

"T-t-that… t-tickles." He finally managed, voice going back and forth from normal, to high pitched rather quickly.

"Yeah I know."

"So s-stop."

Kakashi finally stopped laughing, and Iruka's breathing slowly went back to normal. After a while of silence Kakashi said to no one in particular:

"I like the window shut."

But they still both knew it would stay open, and neither minded.

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End Chapter Three.

T.B.C.

A/N: For some reason, I realize that I only type this when it's actually raining…. It's kinda weird. Both of the others were typed when it was raining out.. And so was this one. Weird… -shrugs- The second half of this chapter got deleted after Naruto said 'On the contrary' -glares- So if that half's written poorly, it's because my computer randomly decided it wanted to close MS word. My Naruto rewrites are always horrible…. -sighs-

On another note, I'm thinking of doing a Kingdom Hearts fic! It would be, of course, a yaoi. RikuxSora in all its' glory, but, I don't know whether I should or not. I definitely want to try though, but I don't know if I should. Oh well, now I'm babbling.

I'll see you in this fic the next time it rains -wink-

_--cj_


	4. Chapter 4

Title: _The Rain's Melody_

Author: _Daitai Otonashii Ookami_

Music While Writing: _Dopo Il Sogno_ from Gunslinger Girl

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"That stuff is disgusting." Sasuke muttered, wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Yeah, but it won't kill you." Naruto shrugged.

"We don't know that."

"I took some and I'm not dead."

"Yeah well, there's still a chance."

"Oh stop whining. You sound like Sakura when she has to sleep outside."

"…. I, Uchiha Sasuke, do not whine." Sasuke said, glaring at Naruto before placing the spoon in the sink and sitting down at the kitchen table. "Whining is below me."

"Well, my foot's below you too, and if you don't shut up about this medicine, it's going to kick your ass." Naruto said, amusement lacing each word, before he sat down as well.

After a minute, Naruto turned to Sasuke, who was staring at him, a slight look of shock that could easily be mistaken for confusion upon his face. Naruto looked confused…. And they sat there, Sasuke shocked and Naruto confused for a full two minutes, before Naruto couldn't take it anymore.

"What the fuck are you looking at?" Naruto growled.

"I thought you were obsessed with Sakura. Why are you being all… Un-Narutoish?" Sasuke frowned at his own lack of adjectives.

"Un-Narutoish? First of all, define Naruto." The blonde said, leaning on the table and placing his chin atop a curled fist. "You, Sasuke, could not even begin to come up with an accurate description of me, you know this, right?"

"Naruto, loud, obnoxious, and an idiot. But he's only an idiot because he chooses to be seen that way." Sasuke said softly. "He's only loud because he doesn't want people to look at the real him. And he's only obnoxious to those he cares about."

Naruto laughed lightly. "You're not too far off, but you make it seem like I actually care Sasuke. You flatter yourself. Do you really think that I only _annoy_ you because I care about you?"

"Yes." He nodded. "Your eyes, they're the same as mine. I should have just listened to you to begin with, instead of fighting it."

Naruto's laughter stopped. Completely serious, he looked up to meet Sasuke's eyes, and felt lost in them. The reflected back at him, looking lost and alone and just wanting someone to be there for him. They looked the same way that Naruto felt.

"… W-what did I say? What… what did I say to make you change your mind? What really made you come back from Orochimaru… Sasuke?"

"When you told me that… that you wondered if being around me was like how it was to be around a brother." Sasuke admitted, suddenly looking away. "I… I felt angry when you said that."

"Why?" Naruto asked, confused. Did Sasuke resent him for thinking of him as family?

"_I don't want to be like a brother to you_." Sasuke said, clenching his eyes shut tighter with each word he spoke.

"Are you saying… are you saying that you don't want to be associated with me?" His voice came out choked and dry. The words sounded stupid, but Naruto couldn't think of any other way to phrase his question. It sounded like Sasuke didn't want Naruto to consider him as close as a brother.

"That's not what I meant, Naruto." He sighed.

"Then just what do you mean, Hm, Sasuke? Everyday it's a different thing with you! You come over and want to hang out and spar and can smile one day, and then you turn around and avoid me like the plague and insult me and glare at me the next. What the hell do you want me to think of you as?" Naruto tried to keep his voice even, but it came out strained and tired none the less. "You act like you enjoy my company, and then you bitch when I when ever I try to hang out with you. You just can't do that to someone, it's not fair!"

"Naruto, you don't get it do you? Why do you think I came back? Do you really think I came back to Konoha for Sakura? Do you really think I came back because I cared about what the villagers thought about me? You _are_ stupid, if you can't tell I came back for you." Sasuke said angrily. "I came back because I needed you. All I could think about was 'what the fuck was I doing,' trying to try and stay away from you. It was like asking me not to breathe."

"If it's so hard to 'stay away from me,' then why don't you _just_ say something to me? Why do you act like you hate me so much?" Naruto asked exasperatedly.

"Because I don't want to feel like this, about you. We're best friends, damnit. I'm not supposed to care for my best friend like this! It's hard even having to look at you, I want to just grab you, and hold you, and not let you go, but I know I can't feel like that, because you're my friend, nothing else.

"Sasuke, you should've just told me. You don't know how I feel, you don't know if I don't feel that way about you as well."

"Naruto, I couldn't do that. I could tell you liked me then, and like me now, I'm not stupid. But… it just wouldn't work. It doesn't matter if we both care about each other because we're friends, and that's it. We won't ever be anything more."

"Why… why not? Am I that annoying? Am I that stupid? What's wrong with me that makes anyone else better? What's wrong with me?"

"Naruto, there's nothing wrong with you. I'm just not the right person for you, and you're not the right person for me."

"I have to be completely masochistic. I can't believe I fell for you. You're an asshole."

"I know."

"Then why didn't you warn me?" Naruto sighed.

"Warn you to what?"

"Warn me not to fall in love with you."

"I didn't think you would." Sasuke admitted. "And I wouldn't ever think that I would ever care about you as much as I do, but it doesn't matter. I already have commitments, I'm sorry."

"You're not sorry. Don't say you're sorry if you don't mean it." Naruto said, voice quivering slightly. "The rain's stopped, and you look better. I think you'd be able to head home now, it's just a few minutes walk, you should be fine."

"Naruto…" Sasuke's voice came out pained, but he didn't finish the sentence. Standing he placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder, who flinched, so he withdrew, face looking away.

"Do you need me to show you the door?" Naruto asked calmly.

"No. I think I'll be able to manage." Sasuke said, walking away. His footsteps sounded for around a half a minute, until Naruto heard the door click open, and then shut.

Only then did he let himself cry. He wouldn't let Sasuke know he had his tears too.

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End Chapter Four

.T.B.C.

A/N: Well, this is getting rather sad. I'm sorry I haven't updated this one in… ever -_winces at the shortness as well_-, but I've gotten totally wrapped up in my other story, Code Shinobi, which I should be working on the next chapter of instead of posting this… but it was just so tempting. I needed to work on another one of my fics to take my mind off of just that one for a minute. I feel like my creativeness can flow once more now… x3 if that makes any sense at all.. -shrug- I still love all my fics… but I can't possibly update them all at once… If Itried, I might.. overload or something. That would suck. Me overloading…

There's no KakaIru in this chapter…. So it made this chapter a bit short… hm.. I really couldn't think of anything else to say about those two. Maybe I'll work in another pairing next chapter. Like.. KibaxShino or something..

Thank you guys who reviewed! I feel so special, you know, since people actually cared enough to tell me they were reading this. This fic started out as something I just thought of when I was walking home one day in the rain, and now I actually think that it's turning out rather nice... I'll make the next chapter extra long and post it extra soon, just for you people who are reading this. That's right, you.

--_cj_


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